René Girard’s Reflections on Modern Jihadism: An IntroductionAuthor(s): Andreas WilmesAbstract:
This paper aims to offer a comprehensive overview of René Girard’s reflections on the issue of modern jihadism. It addresses three key aspects of his reasoning: (I) the rise of Islamic terrorism in the context of a globalization of resentment; (II) modern jihadism understood as an “event internal to the development of technology;” (III) the hypothesis that modern jihadism “is both linked to Islam and different from it.”

Terror Attacks and the Production of the SacredAuthor(s): Thomas ClavelAbstract:
Starting from René Girard and Philippe Muray’s thoughts on terrorism, the present paper introduces the hypothesis that the re-sacralization of the hyperfestive era is the unexpected but seemingly inevitable effect of jihadist attacks in Europe. These assumptions aim to shed new light on the Western rhetoric of commemorative events and media discourses.

Killing for ParadiseAuthor(s): Jean-Marc BourdinAbstract:
The motivations of jihadist suicide attacks seem incomprehensible. However, numerous testimonies indicate that their death as martyrs is their only way to access paradise and its wondrous promises. Martyrdom appears as an option for those who feel a deep resentment and know themselves incapable of being “good Muslims” during their whole earthly life. René Girard, who was interested in this phenomenon (especially in his last book Battling to the End) provides us with some key elements to understand what we will call a neo-pascalian wager undifferentiating self-sacrifice and the sacrifice of others.

Terrorism: from Ethnic Cleansing to Lone WolvesAuthor(s): Paul DumouchelAbstract:
Terrorism takes many forms and numerous actions which at first resemble terrorism are not defined as such and others which are quite different, are described as acts of terrorism. Why? This paper argues that different forms of terrorism are related to the changing structure of the modern state and especially that the close resemblance between many acts of terrorism (especially by lone wolves and mass murders) is related to the transformation of the state’s monopoly of legitimate violence.

Terrorism and DemocracyAuthor(s): Benoît ChantreAbstract:
This paper analyses the threat of Jihadism to modern democracies through the lens of René Girard’s mimetic theory. The study’s main contention is that terrorism is caused not only by resentment and nihilism but is also symptomatic of the contemporary malfunction of Religion when deprived of its sacrificial safeguards. Eventually, this paper aims to deduce the requisites for safeguarding democracy and the foundation of a new interfaith dialogue.

Cold and Efficient Killing MachinesAuthor(s): Jacob RogozinskiAbstract:
In the first chapter of Djihadisme: Le Retour du Sacrifice (Paris: Desclée de Brouwer, 2017), a new philosophical essay on the contemporary threat of jihadism, the author, Jacob Rogozinski, puts into question our current understanding and usages of the word “terrorism.” The chapter argues that the concept of terrorism is often too vague and biased and that it should be replaced by a philosophical approach inspired by Michel Foucault’s thoughts on power. Nonetheless, Foucault’s work needs to be supplemented by the concept of “terror apparatus,” and the author eventually aims to show how this concept can help for a better understanding of contemporary jihadism.

Jihadism: What is a Terror Apparatus? Interview with Jacob RogozinskiAuthor(s): Jacob Rogozinski, Andreas WilmesAbstract:
In the present interview, Jacob Rogozinski elucidates the main concepts and theses he developed in his latest book dedicated to the issue of modern jihadism. On this occasion, he explains his disagreements with other philosophical (Badiou, Baudrillard, Žižek) and anthropological (Girard) accounts of Islamic terrorism. Rogozinski also explains that although jihadism betrays Islam, it nonetheless has everything to do with Islam. Eventually, he describes his own philosophical journey which led him from a phenomenological study of the ego and the flesh to the study of past (witch-hunts, French Reign of Terror) and contemporary (jihadism) terror apparatuses.

Varia

Duress as a Defence in a Case of MurderAuthor(s): Maximilian KienerAbstract:
This essay defends duress as a complete defence in specific cases of murder through discussing the case of Erdemovic, who was convicted by the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) after he killed innocent people to save his own life. To begin with, I will present two objections to the Court’s judgment. Firstly, the Court cannot achieve its objective of deterrence without violating a fundamental legal principle. Secondly, the judgment itself permits that criminals sometimes remove the protecting shield of the criminal law. I will then develop these objections into arguments favouring acquittal and generalise my results.